Well, I just blew the passenger side end-cap of my intercooler. I am in Seattle (300 miles from home) and wondering what my options are. I can see where the plastic end cap has started to pull out of the metal fingers that wrap around it to hold it on. We will be in Seattle until Sunday morning when we need to back home to North Idaho. So, what are my options?

I really don't have unlimited funds to effect this repair.

If I take the intercooler off, can I push the cap back on and tap the fingers back around it? Has anyone tried this? Should I put sealant around it if I do this? I realize this probably wouldn't be a long term solution, but would get me by for now if you guys think it is do-able.

Should I even spend the time trying to find one at a salvage yard, and would it be worth it to spend the money to put on another plastic end one?

Does anyone know of a reputable diesel shop in this area that would have an all-metal one in stock, and any ideas on how much the part would cost me? I am pretty mechanically inclined and it looks like a straightforward replacement, plus I have the factory service manual to refer to.

Any helpful suggestions are welcome, at least I have a couple of days to deal with this.

Thanks in advance!!

RacerDude (Lyle)

 

The intercooler is covered under the cummins engine warranty for 5/100k
The replacement has aluminum tanks,

Bob

 

Thanks for the quick reply Bob, I went and got my warranty booklet out and here's what is listed:

Cylinder block and all internal parts
Cylinder head assemblies
Core plugs
Fuel injection pump and injectors
Gaskets and seals for listed components
Intake and exhaust manifold
Oil pan
Oil pump
Timing gear drive belts and/or chains and cover
Turbocharger housing and internal parts
Valve covers
Water pump and housing

I don't know if it falls under any of that or not. Would it be considered part of the intake and exhaust manifold? Does anyone know the best Dodge dealer in the Seattle area?

Has anyone had one successfully replaced under warranty?

Lyle

 

Just to update and close this thread, I took it to the Dodge dealer in Tacoma (the closest 5-star dealer) and they did NOT warranty it. Plus they charged me $95.00 for the privilege of telling me that. When I took it in I told them I could tell them exactly what it was, but they insisted on "diagnosing" it before they would give me an answer on the warranty.

Anyway, I couldn't find one salvage, the offroad shop didn't have any aftermarket.

So somewhere on here I searched and found where someone had used ratchet straps to pull it back together, so I took it out, removed the end cap further, put the rubber seal back in (along with some epoxy to hold it) and strapped it back together with straps on the top and bottom.

I'm getting the full 40psi that I was before, and my feeling is it will hold until the straps stretch or break. At least it will get me home and give me some time to decide which direction I'm going to go.

Lyle

 

Might have just been the dealer you went to. Many on various boards have had the poorly designed plastic intercoolers replaced under warranty without any problems. How many miles on your truck? Did it have the 7/70 warranty? Are you over 100K ? Try another dealer. Soumds like you have found a temporary solution to get home with but you will need to get a more permant repair soon, and the factory intercooler with metal ends dosen't seem to have any problems and that is the one they use to replace the plastic ones.

Good luck and drive safely.

 

I'm at 91,000. I thought about going to another dealer when I get home, but figured it would be in the system as having been denied -- besides, I can't afford to risk more money and have them tell me it's not covered. I think there are a couple of all-metal ones on eBay, I may try to pick up one of those.

RD

 

Try just asking your local dealer, take your vin with you. Also call Dodge customer service and just ask about it, giving your vin and mileage. Somewhere along the line someone should be able to get you warranty coverage for this repair and possibly get your money back from the other dealer. As long as you are under 5 years old and under 100K there should be no deductable for the engine warranty and I'm quite sure that the intercooler is part of the engine warranty. Don't have my book handy but from other posts it seems that Dodge is replacing them due to the problems with them. I personally think you jjust got a greedy dealer that didn't want to try and help you out, he just thought he had a real fish ready to reel in. Stranded and out of town.

Wish I could be more help than the above but it's worth a try once you get home.

 

how do you propose to get a 40 PSI system covered under warranty?

 

There might be a TSB on the that, which the dealers may or may not tell you. I have caught them ignoring info about TSB stuff many times
I looked but didnt see anything here but might have missed it
http://dodgeram.info/tsb/index.html

 

i agree, a stock engine will not get 40 psi boost, please don't rip off Daimler chrysler! you modified the performance, so you should pay for the resulting damage

 

I have the stock intercooler from my truck, It's in a box ready
to ship pay shipping and it is yours.

 

Relax johnh, after having second thoughts because of just that issue, I'm not going back to the dealer. However, I do think they know that it's a faulty design, which is why they went back to all-metal. Considering how much we pay for vehicles anymore, I think manufacturers should be held responsible for faulty designs.

RD